Did you know it is possible to be allergic to your partner’s semen?

Have you perhaps been trying to get pregnant and it just won’t happen? Several trips to the gynecologist,being treated for infections, popping of anti-bacterial pills almost every other month and doctors confirmation that both your organs are functioning perfect but still no baby! Well, read on…

I know you saw the title and went like huh?!? Yes…it happens! and the worst part is that people don’t realize they are allergic to their partner’s seminal fluid until much later when your gynecologist gets that eureka moment. Actually the condition is known as seminal plasma hypersensitivity.

Spotting the symptoms

Often within half an hour after unprotected sex, if you are allergic to your spouse’s semen you may:

-Experience burning and itching

-Develop hives

-Get diarrhea

-Have breathing difficulties

-Get swollen eyes

Well, a semen allergy is caused by an allergic reaction to a particular protein that is present in semen. There’s a variation in the onset of the allergic reaction as some women experience the allergy from the start of having unprotected sex with their partner and sometimes the allergy may just spring out of the blue after being fine and not experiencing any anomalies with your partner’s semen previously.

As the female vagina is a very sensitive organ that is usually prone to infections you may have been confusing an allergic reaction to semen with an STI as the symptoms could be similar.

To avoid this, you may have to use condoms during intercourse and in the case where you are allergic to latex you should try polyurethane condoms. If you are certain that the symptoms appear after unprotected intercourse then you have the right to suspect seminal plasma hypersensitivity.

Your gynecologist should examine you to verify that you indeed have an allergy to semen. (A small amount of semen is injected under your skin to determine this.)

Treatment in sure cases that you have semen allergy:

There is a desensitization treatment for semen allergy that is safe and effective. You need to do it under the supervision of an allergist or immunologist. It is called a “graded challenge” where diluted solutions of semen are placed in your vagina every twenty minutes until you are able to tolerate undiluted semen. The downside is that the couple has to have intercourse at least once every 48 hours to maintain the desensitization!

Another fascinating thing about semen allergy is you don’t get a bad reaction to the semen of just one guy. If you did, switching partners would be a treatment option, although not always a desired or practical one. If you get a semen allergy, it’s to a protein in semen that all men have.

Also, once you develop a semen allergy, it’s not just in your vagina. The burning and itching can occur any place where semen touches your skin, including in your mouth or up your bum. As is the case with food allergies, a semen allergy might go as fast as it came.

If you are concerned that you or a partner might have a semen allergy, be sure to check with your healthcare provider for proper diagnosis and treatment.

Maureen Ojunga is the newest Health enthusiast in town. She is also a gadget freak and a lover of all things WINE! Besides being a lover of life, she enjoys writing Relationships and Sex pieces and is also an Interior design junkie.

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